Birch
by SilverExorcist405
Summary: Yugi is a slave, there's no getting around it. But when he's bought and taken to the most infamous and deadly place there is, he doesn't know what to do. After all, the assassin's guild called Birch was synonymous with death. Will he survive? Or will he find something there, something worth risking his last chance at freedom... YYxY Please read and review!
1. Chapter 1

Hey guys! Here's another new story! I know I'm just dishing them out like nobody's business, but I just have some many ideas and I want feedback...so please review! Thanks! I hope you like it!

Chapter 1

Sweat and blood trickled down the side of Yugi's face, leaving behind rivulets of grime. His exotic blond, ebony, and violet hair that normally stuck up at odd angles now hugged his head, matted with blood and mud. Shaking his head like a dog, he tried to rid his bruised face of the annoying droplets, but all the action accomplished was to further irritate the tight fitting iron collar hugging his neck in a painful, abrasive grip. The chain attached to the collar clanged lifelessly like a death rattle. Giving a yank on his bound hands, the man who was leading him down the dark alleyway grumbled.

Because the truth was that Yugi was a slave.

He had been one for as long as he could remember. The simple idea of his own freedom was as foreign to him as his current destination, which was very well hidden in the shadows of a maze of alleyways. Who knew where this man was leading him?

Thinking of said man, Yugi glanced up at the weather beaten fellow. He was well muscled, and black clothing shrouded him in further mystery. He had pale, icy blue eyes that commanded authority and slick brown hair that crowned his sharp hawk like features.

This man had bought him not moments before, muttering something to the slave master that not even Yugi's ears could hear. His slave master's eyes had widened in pure fright, and he had gulped before scrambling over to Yugi and thrusting him before the man for inspection.

"He's our best fighter, sir." His slave master had blurted as the man looked him over. Yugi's trained amethyst eyes followed his movements. Yugi was small, and quite eagerly underestimated by his opponents when slave masters pitted slaves against each other for entertainment. He had always been the "secret weapon" as his former master liked to call him.

As the man continued to size him up, Yugi stiffened when his senses caught a whirl of air behind him. Yugi's hyper-sensitive ears however, easily picked up the three slices of cutting air heading towards the man.

Leaping up, despite the 60 pounds of chains he carried on his shackles, he snatched the first two daggers in his hands and than caught the last knife in one of the iron loops in his chains.

Landing gracefully, Yugi immediately knelt, placing the deadly blades in front of him. Moving without permission was prohibited, and he silently waited for punishment.

Instead, the man bought him.

His slave master had only gulped and nodded, offering a small price for him. Even Yugi blinked at the price. This man must hold some sort of importance that he did not know of.

Yugi continued to study said man, his new master. The stern set of his jaw was drenched in pride, and a long, straight nose seemed to always be above anyone who dared look at him.

Tall and proud. Maybe no such a good thing.

He wore a long, black trench coat which swept up at the edges as if billowing in an unseen wind. While his one hand casually gripping his chains, the other adjusted his collar. Yugi's amethyst eyes were drawn by the movement, and he almost gasped.

There, tattooed on his neck, was an upside down pyramid with an eye in the middle. The symbol of the millennium puzzle! Which only meant one thing…

Suddenly, Yugi knew where he was going.

That symbol was well known throughout the country, if not throughout the entire world. Everyone knew it, slave and noble alike.

It was the symbol of Birch, the assassin's guild.

The name Birch rang with the same familiarity as 'death' and 'cold.' If you wanted someone dead, pay the right price, and the next day they would be but pictures on the mantel and tears in their lover's eyes.

The government turned a blind eye, for fear of a massacre.

They were lawless.

They were unforgiving.

They were murderers.

Bloodthirsty, money hungry, uncontrollable murderers.

Yugi gulped.

Of all the people to be bought by, it just had to be a member of Birch. He probably wouldn't even last the night.

Yugi felt fear eat him.

Fear.

As comfortable and well known as pain, it was an author that had penned out his entire life. His sense of smell became even more acute with adrenaline, taking in the putrid scents of the alley way that flooded the shadows like gas. He could practically taste the odors. His amethyst eyes caught the glint of death in the nocks and crannies of the dark. His hearing sharpened, picking up the short in takes of breath from the man leading him and the quiet, oh so quiet, footfalls of the man. The clanking of his chains seemed so loud, it threatened to break his eardrums as the deep clanging resonated within him.

He felt death.

He felt fear.

He felt nothing.

He almost felt like laughing at himself.

How many times in his eighteen, long years had he found himself begging for death to steal him away in the midst of some brutal torture? And now here he was, wishing not to die. How many times had he wished for this all to end? He could not say. All he could do was painfully stumble along as the man gave another jerk on his shackles.

And then soon, too soon, there it was.

The huge building towered over the ramshackle homes around it like a crown in the mud. It was dark, but drenched with grandeur and obvious wealth. Dark paint covered the gold and silver etched walls. The windows gaped with large maws, but they were few in number.

But the most impressive feature of the structure were the massive oaken doors. Monumentally enormous, they guarded the guild's secrets with their sheer size.

And there, above those colossal doors, was the glinting gold symbol of the millennium puzzle.

The man strode forward as if he was not walking straight into the home of death. Grasping one of the massive, curving door handles, the man swung open the door as if it weighed nothing, which it most certainly didn't.

What Yugi saw next, he would never forget.

The gargantuan doors opened up into an enormous hall. Tables and chairs scattered around the nearly infinite amount of space, and a huge bar sat like an old man in the corner. But the center of attention lay in the middle of the vast room.

Men and women were gathered around a depression like arena were two men were fighting. Shouts of encouragement and cursing nearly deafened Yugi, whose ears were highly attuned at the moment.

The man leading him harrumphed and continued to lead Yugi past the crowd jeering at the two fighters, who Yugi quickly recognized as slaves upon seeing the callouses on their collarbones, wrists, and ankles.

Yugi gulped, swallowing the tangy, metallic taste of blood.

Another yank of his chains brought him back to the man in front of him.

"You're to report to the slave master, Mokuba. Understood?" The man's voice was deep, demanding, and just as proud as he appeared.

Yugi nodded, keeping his gaze low.

"I hate running errands…" the man muttered before walking off, tossing him his end of his chains and leaving Yugi in the middle of the Birch guild all alone.

He really was dead, wasn't he?

...sort of a short chapter, but I hope you liked it! Please review! ;)


	2. Chapter 2

I really liked writing this one! Please review!

Chapter 2

Yugi limped out into the night, darkness failing to hide the glint of blood that gushed like tears from various gashes through his torn clothing. At least he didn't have to wear chains anymore.

After finding Mokuba a week ago, he had found out that he was to serve as a simple slave who did menial labor. Thankfully, he didn't have to fight in the Arena, as it was often referred too.

But soon, he realized that dusting and cleaning were not his only duties.

Often times, guild members would 'take out their frustration' with him. This often translated into torture. Nothing new, of course. Nothing he hadn't done before. But he did admit to himself that it he had never been so beaten within an inch of his life so repeatedly. He was lucky he healed quickly, otherwise he was sure to have died the second day.

It was now, at one o'clock in the morning, that he was sent out to get groceries. He had just come from a session with a woman called Tea, who loved whips and knives.

Obviously, there were no stores open at this hour, but if he came back empty handed he would probably die. He couldn't just run away either. Mokuba had made that clear. They would find him.

Running wasn't an option.

He would have to steal.

Yugi really hated stealing. In fact, he hated anything that even hinted at dishonesty.

Not like he had a choice anyway. With a sigh, he skillfully climbed up to the rooftops where it was easier to move around without being spotted. The darkness swirled, thick and soupy. Moonlight slivered through the overcast night sky, randomly alighting parts of the shadows with silver coldness.

Yugi ran, undistinguishable from shadows. Just as he was about to turn towards the grocery store where his salvation from a beating lay, the clouds shifted once more, letting a beam of moonlight fall onto a lone figure sitting on a chimney not so far away from him.

Yugi froze, staring. His awareness of his surroundings skyrocketed. The wind ruffled his hair softly, caressing his cheek. Eyes honing to near perfection, amethyst gazed upon the figure who remained as a black silhouette. The seated figure had yet to notice him- that was clear. The man, for Yugi assumed he was one, was sitting facing away from him.

What caught Yugi's eyes was the similar shape of their hair. It resembled his own star shaped mane, though he had a hard time telling in the darkness.

The silence of the night was shattered however when three shrouded figures suddenly pounced from the enveloping darkness, attacking the seated figure. In a split-second, a fight ensued.

Yugi watched in fascination as the seated figure seemed to disappear from sight as he fought his three opponents. He was faster than a cobra, and yet as strong and quiet as a black panther. He moved with grace. He was deadly.

His three opponents fell, but Yugi sensed something off. As the dark figure resumed his seated position, Yugi thought fast, or rather, he didn't think at all.

Yugi leapt into action. Sprinting around, he caught the glint of a knife in the dark. Just as Yugi thought.

Back tracking so that he was now facing the seated man, Yugi pushed his legs up and jumped across from one roof to another with incredible speed.

Yugi looked over at the seated figure, who he could now see clearly. They looked very much alike, to his surprise. He had sharp, calculating crimson eyes that were at the moment currently lost in thought. Handsomely cut features where crowned with black, crimson, and blond streaks of hair that so resembled Yugi's that it made him gasp.

However, Yugi's attention was drawn back to the attacker behind the handsome man. The man would be too late. He would not have enough time to defend himself.

He watched as crimson eyes widened in that split second when he realized that someone was behind him. He was turning ever so slowly, so slowly…

Yugi flew.

Kicking the arching knife out of the man's hand, Yugi skillfully caught it as it spun in the air before spinning through the air so that he was facing the attacker. Yughi growled, and the man ran, retreating in pure fear.

Yugi sighed, before tossing the blade up into the air and catching it with practiced, nimble fingers. He had no use for it, but the blade was made well. If he brought it back to Birch, he would surely be punished.

He threw it at the retreating figure of the assassin-want-to-be. The hilt struck him flat in the head, not killing him, but merely knocking him out. Every movement was starting to tax him now as his wounds spewed blood in protest. Pain tore at him, making him clench a fist.

Well, now Yugi had groceries to steal.

Turning around, he came face to face with keen crimson eyes.

The seated man! The guy he had just saved! How could he be so stupid as to forget him!

The crimson eyes glimmered with something that put Yugi on guard. He had never seen such a gaze directed towards him before. It was a puzzle, a maze. He did not know what it meant.

What he did know was he had to get away from this man. And _fast. _

Springing into action, he whirled around and tore across the rooftops. His heart pounded. Pain shrieked.

The man was in front of him in the blink of an eye. There was no way to run. He could easily be blocked if he simply went left or right. Yugi would have to just stop and face him.

Yugi blinked at those ruby eyes as he continued to run straight at the man. There was only one way out.

Using the powerful muscle that coiled up from years of suffering in his thighs, Yugi found himself flying once more.

_Over the man. _

When he landed on the rooftops behind him, he couldn't help but grunt in agony. His wounds were screaming at him, roaring like dying titans that had born the world for too long. The darkness swallowed him.

Somehow, he managed to get the groceries he needed and to get back to the guild before dawn. Tea however didn't think he had done so in a timely fashion, and she made him aware of it throughout the morning in a small room where his screams of anguish couldn't be heard by anyone else.

By the time he was sweeping out the Hall, which was the name for the large opening room that greeted whoever dared enter the guild, the sun was setting into a hot evening. Blood ran down his brow along with sweat from exhaustion. Pain seared through his entire body whenever he braved a step or took a breath to satisfy his burning lungs.

Mai, the bartender, raised an eyebrow and nodded at his purple and black dappled form often splattered with the dark stains of long swathes of blood.

"Tea?" she inquired. Yugi merely nodded his head.

Mai harrumphed. Yugi liked Mai. She was one of the few people who was actually kind to him, if not treating him like a piece of trash was kindness. Anyway, she was better than anyone else in the large band of assassins.

Who was the leader of Birch, Yugi had no clue. He only heard guild members refer to "The Boss" and "The King" several times before. Yugi wasn't sure he wanted to meet this "King of Assassins'" but he at least wanted to know it was. Whoever he was, he must be incredibly talented in order to have gained such a title.

His thoughts turned to the man he had encountered the night previously. Who was that man? He was shrouded in mystery and questions. Yugi just hoped it wasn't someone he would seek him out later. He had seen him quite clearly in the moonlight, and Yugi didn't want to be recognized by anyone.

At the moment, everyone else's attention was gathered around the Arena. Ushio, an especially tall and brawny assassin had bought a new slave, and was proving that he could beat every other slave in the guild. Bets tumbled like stones in an avalanche. Shouting echoed as numerous as broken promises.

It was then that the doors to the guild swung open, and the crowd of assassins all fell silent when a man walked into the Hall.

Yugi looked up, his brutally tortured body becoming rigid at the sight.

It was him, the man from the night before.

It was him.

...cliffhanger! Review!


	3. Chapter 3

Please review!

Chapter 3

Yami sighed as Seto left the room. Yami didn't need a bodyguard! He could take care of himself. He was the King of Assassins', for goodness sakes! He didn't need some worthless man following him around all the time. Yami glared at his desk.

His cousin could really be annoying sometimes.

What did he mean, it would be good to have someone close?! Nobody willing to take on the job was a good enough fighter anyway.

Yami looked up from his desk and glared at the huge grandfather clock as it ticked away the day.

He hadn't gotten a wink of sleep-not like he needed it- but he still couldn't help but think about that boy.

The boy.

Yami closed his eyes. The boy had breath-stealing amethyst eyes that glimmered in the moonlight like rare gems. He had his unique hair that still baffled him on its resemblance to his own. He was short, but then again, so was he. He growled just thinking about the horrid condition the boy's body had been in, and yet he had moved so skillfully.

The boy.

The boy who saved his life.

He hated admitting it, but it was true. He really should stop going out for his midnight walks. They always ended in disaster.

He would have died, if not been seriously wounded, if not for that boy. That was debt that one could never stop repaying.

But why did the one who had to save him have to be so damn cute?!

Slamming his fist into his desk, he leapt out of the imprisoning room and through the window to land on the street surrounding the guild. The sun was in the middle of kissing the horizon goodnight. Maybe today was a good day to check to see how the guild was doing.

In the blink of an eye, Yami stood in front of the guild's doors. The boy still lingered in his mind like a haunting ghost that didn't want to go away.

He'd have to ask who that boy was. Surely someone with his skills would have some sort of reputation. Plus, Seto knew everything.

Opening the doors with practiced ease, Yami surveyed the crowd which had gone completely silent and still at his appearance.

Now the fun would begin.

….

Yugi didn't dare move.

He didn't even blink.

Why was the room so quiet?

Just then, Seto, the man who bought him, walked into the room. He hesitated for a moment to see who everyone was looking at.

"Hello King Yami." He said in his proud voice.

"Hello Seto." Hawk like carmine eyes snapped to icy blue ones. The man's voice was a deep baritone. Yugi was mesmerized.

Wait- the King? As in _the _King of Assassins', the one and only leader of Birch, the Boss?

No.

"Well what do we have here?" The man-Yami-said as he approached the fight that had so abruptly stopped in the Arena.

"I've got an excellent slave fighter, sir." Ushio said, confidence dripping from his voice.

Yami gestured forward, allowing for the fight to continue. Soon, the hall was full of jeering and taunting once more.

Yugi had yet to move. His eyes were glued to Yami. As if feeling a gaze upon him, the king of assassins' looked up. Their eyes locked.

Yugi felt as if he were drowning in those dark, blood red eyes. They were surprised upon seeing him, but they soon become level and calculating. They beckoned to Yugi. He was trapped.

A roar from the crowd did not break their gaze. Ushio's slave had won yet again.

"There is not a slave in this guild that can beat him!" Ushio proclaimed.

It was then that Yami swung his head around and considered him.

"I do not believe that to be true."

The crowd fell silent once more. Ushio looked indignant.

"Who could beat me?!"

"He could." Yami smirked slightly and nodded in Yugi's direction. Yugi just stared, amethyst eyes wide.

There was a pause in the crowd, before everyone burst out laughing. However, upon seeing Yami's serious expression, the sniggers were wiped off their faces.

Yami looked over at Yugi expectantly, calling him over with his eyes.

Yugi dropped his broom and limped as if in a trance over to the Arena. Death glares stabbed at him. He looked up shyly at the man he had saved just the night before. He winked and nodded at the Arena.

Yugi gulped and nodded, blood sticking in his throat.

He slid down the side of the Arena, stumbling a little when he reached the bottom. The crowd laughed at this, and people began to jeer at him.

Yugi looked across the Arena at the well-built, stocky form of his opponent.

He glanced up at Yami one more time. He was met with hard eyes. The man above him nodded. He carried his name on his shoulders. The trust in those eyes made Yugi blink.

Yugi looked back at his opponent. He wasn't ridiculous tall, but he was taller than him. Muscles rippled underneath his torn shirt. He had small, beady scheming eyes that glared down at him, laughing silently. His short brown hair was matted in sweat. There wasn't a single cut or bruise on him, unlike Yugi, who was riddled with wound after wound after wound.

He took a step forward, the man did nothing.

"Come on, hurry up with the fighting!"

"Knock him out!"

"Show that puny little boy whose boss!"

Yugi looked straight into the man's beady eyes, and closed his own. He took a breath, erasing the pain that gnawed and chewed and burned.

When he opened his eyes, they were so highly attuned he could have seen dust on the man's nose- bright amethyst splintering into an explosion of detail. The only sound he heard was both of their breathing, his heartbeat, and the man's shifting feet. The roars of the crowd were no more. He had a bad left ankle, Yugi observed, and his right shoulder is weak just below the pressure point, probably from a previous fight based on the hairline scar that only he could see. The smell of sweat and blood filled his nose. He felt it.

He was the behind the man in a flash, kicking him in the left ankle. The man grunted in pain, leaping to his right to avoid Yugi. Yugi merely used his momentum to flip off the nearly vertical Arena wall and shoot behind him. Swiftly, Yugi swung his hand down hard on the scar he had noticed before. The man screamed in pain and grasped his shoulder as he fell to his knees as he put to much weight on his injured ankle.

Finishing the job, Yugi swiftly knocked him out with a chop to the back of the neck.

He blinked, and his senses calmed down. The adrenaline lingered, however. The room was fatally silent. Yugi looked up.

The dark eyes of Ushio were narrowed angrily at him, fuming. All the other assassins' held mixed expressions of surprise and hatred. Yugi's amethyst gaze finally landed on Yami's crimson eyes.

A smug smile was tugging at his lips.

"You," Yami said, nodding at him once more. "Come with me."

Yugi leapt gracefully out of the Arena and followed him. Eyes stared. Yugi bowed his head as he was led up an enormous flight of stairs. Upon passing through several hallways, they came to a large door with the millennium puzzle etched in its dark surface. They entered.

It was a study of some sort. A huge desk sat opposite a large grandfather clock. A stubby chair sat opposite a long, open window that expanded the length of the room.

Yami sat down at the desk and stared at him. Yugi shifted uneasily under the frank scrutiny. The silence was as fragile as glass.

"Please, sit down." Yami shattered the glass.

Yugi looked at the short chair and sat down, facing Yami.

The silence rebuilt. Yami continued to look at him, emotions flitting in his eyes. Yugi recognized anger, and he felt that all too familiar fear yank at him.

"What's your name little one?" The deep baritone resonated in Yugi's lungs.

"Yugi." He whispered.

"Do you know who I am?"

Yugi nodded, too afraid to speak.

"That didn't seem the case last night."

Yugi nodded again.

Silence.

"You saved my life without knowing who or what I was, didn't you?"

Another nod.

Yami's eyes were ablaze. Yugi almost whimpered, and he bit his lip. He was going to die now, wasn't he?

Silence once more. But Yugi only had to look into those red eyes. They gleamed with anger, cold and deadly.

Abruptly, Yami stood up and looked out of his window, as if deep in thought.

"Who did that to you?"

Yugi blinked. What did he mean? He then looked back down at his wounds. Oh. _That. _

"People." Yugi whispered quietly.

"From the guild?"

"Yes."

The last ounces of adrenaline that had thus far kept Yugi from giving into severe exhaustion were dripping away. Yugi's mind silently protested with his body. He must stay awake, stay alert. This man in front of him could kill him in a heartbeat.

Not like he would have a choice anyway. He was a slave after all.

Yami turned around to face him just as all of his energy was zapped out of him. Yugi crumpled out of the chair and onto the floor.

"Yugi!"

Yami was beside him in an instant. Yugi propped himself up on his elbows, weakly smiling.

"Sorry master. I did not mean to do that."

Yami helped him up back into his chair, but the boy really needed a place to lie down. Picking him up bridal style, Yami carried him into the adjoining room, which was his bedroom. Yugi weighed close to nothing, Yami observed.

Eyelids were veiling amethyst, and before he had even lain him on his bed, the young one was asleep.

Yami half smiled-half frowned at the boy. What was he to do now?

Striding out of the room, he searched for Seto.

Maybe having a bodyguard wasn't such a bad idea.

...Please review!


	4. Chapter 4

Hello! I am super busy with my other story, Crimson Eyed Anger, so I haven't been able to work on this that much. Don't worry, I'm finishing the story, it just might take me a while to update. Thank you! -SilverExorcist405


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